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What Are Some Similarities Between Hinduism and Buddhism ?

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Submitted By carlaboo
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For my paper, I chose to write about the similarities between hinduism and buddhism. I chose to write about this because after our visit to the indian temple, I realized that both religions had many similarities among each other. Which got me thinking that could they poetically be the same type of religion with just a few differences here and there. In order to discover their similarities I chose to use the following books, “The world of buddhism,” by Heinz Bechert and Richard Gombrich, “Hinduism past and present,” by Axel Michaels, and “Experiencing the world’s religions,” by Michael Molloy. As we continue to read these books we will discover what their real similarities are and maybe how they come about. Both hinduism and buddhism originated in the Indian subcontinent and share a very long, but rather peculiar and uncomfortable relationship, which in many ways is comparable to that of Judaism and Christianity. The buddha was born in a Hindu family, just like Christ was born in a jewish family. Some people still argue that buddhism was an offshoot of Hinduism and the Buddha was a part of the Hindu pantheon, a view which is not acceptable to many Buddhist. It is however widely accepted that Buddhism gained popularity in India because it released the people from the oppression of tradition and orthodoxy. The teachings of the Buddha created hope and aspiration for those who had otherwise no hope of salvation and freedom of choice in a society that was dominated by caste system, predominance of ritual form of worship and the exclusive status of the privileged classes which the Vedic religion upheld as inviolable and indisputable. Long ago, over 1500 years ago, Hindu tradition accepted the Buddha as an incarnation of Vishnu. However strong rivalry existed between both traditions in the subcontinent for a very long time. The followers of Siva and the Buddha could

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