Hinduism and Buddhism

Hinduism...the beginning The Aryans believed in many gods and goddesses. Their priest is called Brahma. They wrote down their ancient hymns and epics in Sanskrit. Over the years the Aryan religion evolved into the Hindu religion. It is one of the world’s oldest religions. Today it is the third largest religion in the world. Reincarnation Goal is to become one with Brahman All life is sacred

Hindus tend to think of all of the gods and goddesses that they worship as different parts of one universal spirit—called Brahman. The search for this universal spirit is described in the ancient religious writings known as the Upanishads. This is the belief that every living being wants to be reunited with Brahman and that this happens when a person dies.

Salty Water An easy way to understand this—a soul becomes one with Brahman is like a lump of salt thrown into the water. The lump of salt is gone, but the water tastes salty. The salt has become part of the water.

Four main ideas of Hinduism Karma Reincarnation Dharma Caste System

Karma Karma—the consequences of how a person lives their lives. It means that if you do your duty and live a good life, you will have good karma. This will bring you closed to Brahman. It may take you many life cycles to get to Brahman.

Reincarnation and Dharma Reincarnation—the idea of passing through many lives to reach the Brahman. A person lives their life and may be born into a higher level because of their karma. Dharma is the divine law. It requires that people perform their jati. This how they earn the reward of a better life in their next life, they must perform their duty.

Caste System Dividing society into smaller groups Each caste has its duties The caste system was similar to India’s social class system, except that one could not break out of one’s caste. Really only works in small villages Closely linked to the Hindu religion

Siddhartha Gautama Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama. He was a prince, born around 563 B.C. He was wealthy, handsome, happily married and with a son…he seemed to have it all! He traveled one day beyond the walls and realized that people were ill, poor, and homeless. This was the first time that he was aware of suffering.

He left his family and his riches to search for the answer to a great riddle— “Why did people suffer and how could their suffering be cured?” He meditated under a great tree for 49 days and finally he understood. He then spent the rest of his life telling people of his discoveries.

The origins of Buddhism Because of the caste system, which was crushing to those in the lower class many came to question the Hindu ideas. Buddhism became popular because of its rejection of the caste system. With Buddhism there was no caste system!

Buddhism—What is it? Siddhartha/Buddha believed that the only way to find truth about the world was to give up all desires. By doing this, pain and sorrow would vanish. If a person gave up all desires, he or she would reach nirvana—a state of wisdom. Nirvana came from the Sanskrit word for blowing out a candle flame.

The Four Noble Truths The core of Buddha’s teaching is called the Four Noble Truths. 1. Life is full of suffering 2. People suffer because they desire worldly things and self-satisfaction. 3. The way to end suffering is to stop desiring things. 4. The only way to stop desiring things is to follow the Eightfold Path.

The Eightfold Path describes the steps to eliminate suffering. 1. Know and understand the Four Noble Truths. 2. Give up worldly things and don’t harm others. 3. Tell the truth, don’t gossip, and don’t hang speak badly of others. 4. Don’t commit evil acts, like killing, stealing, or living an unclean life.

5. Do rewarding work. 6. Work for good and oppose evil. 7. Make sure your mind keeps your senses under control. 8. Practice meditation as a way of understanding reality.

A special kind of Buddhism developed For years people followed traditional Buddhist practices, but then people began to disagree…Buddhism split into two different groups. Theravada which means teachings of the elders and Mahayana which teaches that Buddha is a god who came to save people. Tibet is a country in central Asia where Mahayana Buddhism mixed with traditional Tibetan religion and Hinduism to create a special kind of Mahayana Buddhism. A type of government, in which government is run by religious leaders is known as theocracy. In Tibet, religious leaders, called lamas, headed the government. The Dalai Lama was the government leader, and the Panchen Lama was the religious leader.

Check for understanding What is one of the world’s oldest and largest (3rd) religions? Hinduism What is karma? The consequences of how a person lives their lives. What is reincarnation? The idea of passing through many lives to reach the Brahman

Who was the founder of Buddhism? Siddhartha Gautama Why did many people accept Buddhism? There was no caste