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Atman And Buddhism Comparison Essay

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One of the most followed religions in the world- Hinduism and Buddhism, share the same similar beliefs as Buddhism emerged from Hinduism. Buddha who was once known as Siddhartha, an Indian prince, was raised in a royal Hindu family and later discovered Buddhism. Buddhism promotes the idea of Kamma, which donates that man’s action ripes in consequences; good things appear in good consequences and vice versa. It’s like a body and its shadow; you reap what you sow. The reason for suffering is due to the cravings that cause man to sink in materialistic things and is difficult to leave them behind. The Dhammapada are the sayings of Buddha in the form of verses and emphasize the four levels of teaching, which promotes the virtues of Buddha’s Middle Path. It …show more content…

Brahman means the universe which the ultimate reality. It is beyond any intellectual understanding. In the Upanishads it’s mentioned that Atman and Brahman are made from the same elements and the belief of both things being different is just a mere illusion. For example, when a soul is liberated it returns to the universe. It is liberated to a universe of souls and reabsorbed into Brahman. The following verse mentioned in Katha Upanishad, explains the similarity between Atman and Brahman- “As the same fire assumes different shapes, when it consumes objects differing in shape, so does the one Self take the shape, of every creature in whom he is present.” (Ancient Hitory Encyclopedia, 2014) The biggest difference between the two religions is the belief about Self. Upanishads tell us that the core of our self is Atman, and not the body or mind. It suggests the innermost essence can only be experienced at the deepest level of our existence through meditation. Whereas, Buddha promotes the idea of no inner self/atman. He believed in the term “Anatma” which means no self and that we all change based on our experiences in

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